The origins of the Gauvain Paris breton striped shirt
The breton striped shirt is now over 150 years old and still proudly sports its horizontal stripes.
In 1858, a military ordinance made the breton striped shirt one of the pieces of the official uniform of the French Navy. This uniform also includes sailor pants, a white shirt with a blue collar, a hat with a pompom, and a short woolen cloth coat that would become the famous pea coat.
The breton striped shirt then had to meet strict specifications. The number of stripes and their dimensions were precisely defined: on the body of the striped shirt, there must be 21 white stripes, each 20 mm wide, and 20 to 21 blue stripes 10 mm wide. On the sleeves, there must be 15 white stripes and 14 to 15 blue stripes.
The sleeves were not to be too long, so as not to stick out from the jacket, and the neckline had to reach the crew neck.
Gauvain Paris stripes, a signature
Today, stripes have not disappeared from sailor tops and follow our brand's own signature. They are now available in several colors.
Their symbolism has evolved enormously. While striped clothing was originally reserved for convicts and prisoners, its adoption by the French Navy helped rehabilitate it.
Yet no one really knows why sailors adopted a striped uniform. According to some, the contrasting blue and white stripes made it easier to spot a man who had fallen overboard. It is also said that the 21 stripes symbolized the number of Napoleonic victories.
Other versions claim that, because indigo was expensive, striped tops were made in alternating white and blue for economy, or that blue was introduced to compensate for the messy appearance of white.
Whatever the reason, these stripes were gradually adopted by fishermen and boaters before seducing the greatest couturiers — Coco Chanel, Yves Saint Laurent, Jean-Paul Gaultier and Karl Lagerfeld — who all revisited the codes of the marinière on their runways.
The secrets of making Gauvain Paris breton striped tops
Our women's striped tops are made to the highest standards, thanks to the human know-how of our seamstresses.
Each striped sweater requires several kilometers of cotton yarn and several days of work, from knitting to the finished piece. Our women's breton has 15 blue stripes on the body and 14 on the sleeves.
Several manual steps are required: cutting the cotton panels, assembling the various pieces of the top, picketing, overlocking, covering, and affixing the labels and logo.
The women's breton striped shirts then pass through quality control before being ironed, packaged, and shipped to our customers worldwide.
How to wear a breton striped shirt?
The breton striped shirt is the essential piece for a casual-chic style, suitable for both the office and the weekend. It pairs with every basic and can be worn with jeans and trainers or with a skirt and heels.
The Gauvain Paris women's sailor top works beautifully with a blazer and boyfriend jeans, tucked in to highlight the waist and hips. It is a perfect replacement for a white shirt in a pantsuit, and can also be worn with loose pants and high heels for a chicer, dressier style.
The breton striped shirt is perfect over a skater skirt or slipped under denim overalls for a resolutely vintage yet modern look. Today, the trend is mixing prints. For an outfit full of character, blend the stripes of the sailor top with the floral or graphic patterns of a jacket or skirt.
